ANCHOR Act
Officially: “ANCHOR Act” Read the full text
What it does
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1Short title
This section gives the Act a short name: the Accelerating Networking, Cyberinfrastructure, and Hardware for Oceanic Research Act, or the ANCHOR Act.
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1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Accelerating Networking, Cyberinfrastructure, and Hardware for Oceanic Research Act or the ANCHOR Act .
2Definitions
This section defines terms used in the Act. "U.S. Academic Research Fleet" means United States-flagged vessels that meet all of the following: they have been accepted into and are active participants in the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System; they are operated as oceanographic research vessels by research universities and laboratories; they receive funding from the National Science Foundation; and they have been designated as member vessels through a standard evaluation process. "Director" means the Director of the National Science Foundation. "Oceanographic research vessel" has the meaning given that term in section 2101 of title 46 of the United States Code.
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2. Definitions In this Act: (1) U.S. Academic Research Fleet The term U.S. Academic Research Fleet means the United States-flagged vessels that— (A) have been accepted into, and are active participants administered within, the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System; (B) are operated as oceanographic research vessels by research universities and laboratories; (C) receive funding from the National Science Foundation; and (D) have achieved designation as a member vessel through a standard evaluation process. (2) Director The term Director means the Director of the National Science Foundation. (3) Oceanographic research vessel The term oceanographic research vessel has the meaning given the term in section 2101 of title 46, United States Code.
3Plan to improve cybersecurity and telecommunications of U.S. Academic Research Fleet
This section would require the Director of the National Science Foundation, no later than 1 year after the Act becomes law, to consult with the head of any federal agency, university, or laboratory that owns or operates a vessel of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet, and then submit a plan to improve the Fleet's cybersecurity and telecommunications to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House Committee on Space, Science, and Technology. The plan would have to include: an assessment of the Fleet's telecommunications and networking needs, matched to each vessel's typical scientific mission; an assessment of cybersecurity needs, following guidance from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, covering both who owns Fleet vessels and the typical research functions and topics of those vessels; an assessment of the costs to meet those telecommunications and cybersecurity needs, including equipment such as satellite communications gear, software, shipboard and shoreside high-performance computing clusters, and enterprise hardware, plus estimated personnel costs above current spending, including training, support, and logistics; an assessment of how long it would take to make the needed upgrades under different possible budget and funding levels; consideration of adopting common solutions or shared group licensing agreements, or centralizing fleet cybersecurity, telecommunications, or data management functions at a single facility; and, developed in consultation with any non-federal owners of Fleet vessels, a spending plan showing how the National Science Foundation, the Office of Naval Research, non-federal vessel owners, Fleet users, or some combination of these, would cover the assessed costs. In preparing the plan, the Director would also have to consider the network speed and bandwidth targets each class of Fleet vessel needs to carry out its scientific mission, including for: running the vessel's critical functions and communications; giving deployed personnel network access for health and well-being purposes, such as telemedicine (including mental health care), counseling, interviews with crisis response providers, and other remote care and services; uploading scientific data to a shoreside server as operations require, including copying data off the ship for disaster recovery or risk mitigation; where appropriate, real-time streaming so shore-based observers can take part in shipboard maintenance or research; real-time coordinated viewing of scientific instruments so fully remote experts can help conduct scientific surveys and seafloor mapping, and of critical operational technology so manufacturers and vendors can remotely advise on maintenance and repairs when on-ship expertise is limited; and, where appropriate, video communications for outreach and educational services to K-12 students, including occasional remote classroom teaching by instructors at sea. The Director would also have to consider, in consultation with the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the heads of other federal agencies as appropriate: the cybersecurity recommendations in the JASON advisory group's October 2021 report "Cybersecurity at NSF Major Facilities" (JSR-21-10E) as they would apply to the Fleet; aligning with international information security standards and guidance, including encryption of sensitive information and detecting and handling security incidents; facilitating access to cybersecurity personnel and training for research and support staff; and the requirements that apply to controlled unclassified or classified information.
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3. Plan to improve cybersecurity and telecommunications of U.S. Academic Research Fleet (a) In general Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall, in consultation with the head of any Federal agency, university, or laboratory that owns or operates a vessel of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet, submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Space, Science, and Technology of the House of Representatives a plan to improve the cybersecurity and telecommunications of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet. (b) Elements The plan required by subsection (a) shall include— (1) an assessment of the telecommunications and networking needs of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet, consistent with the typical scientific mission of that vessel; (2) in accordance with guidance issued by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the National Institute for Standards and Technology, an assessment of cybersecurity needs appropriate for— (A) the ownership of vessels within the U.S. Academic Research Fleet; and (B) the typical research functions and topics of such vessels; (3) an assessment of the costs necessary to meet the needs described in paragraphs (1) and (2), including— (A) any necessary equipment, such as satellite communications equipment, software, high-performance computing clusters shipboard and shoreside, or enterprise hardware; and (B) estimated personnel costs in excess of current expenditures, including any necessary training, support, or logistics; (4) an assessment of the time required to implement any upgrades required to meet the needs described in paragraphs (1) and (2) under varying budgets and funding scenarios; (5) the adoption of common solutions or consortial licensing agreements, or by centralizing elements of fleet cybersecurity, telecommunications or data management at a single facility; and (6) in consultation with any non-Federal owners of a vessel of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet, a spending plan for the National Science Foundation, the Office of Naval Research, non-Federal owners of vessels of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet, users of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet, or any combination thereof, to provide funding to cover the costs described in paragraph (3). (c) Considerations The Director shall, in preparing the plan required by subsection (a), consider— (1) the network capabilities, including speed and bandwidth targets, necessary to meet the scientific mission needs of each class of vessel within the U.S. Academic Research Fleet for such purposes as— (A) executing the critical functions and communications of the vessel; (B) providing network access for the health and well-being of deployed personnel, including communications to conduct telemedicine (including mental health care), counseling, interviews with crisis response providers, and other remote individual care and services; (C) as necessary to meet operations, uploading any scientific data to a shoreside server, including the copying of data off ship for disaster recovery or risk mitigation purposes; (D) as appropriate, conducting real-time streaming to enable shore-based observers to participate in ship-based maintenance or research activities; (E) real-time coordinated viewing of— (i) scientific instrumentation so that it is possible to conduct scientific surveys and seafloor mapping with fully remote subject-matter experts; and (ii) critical operational technology by manufacturers and vendors so that it is possible to carry out maintenance and repairs to systems with limited expertise on the vessel, with fully remote subject-matter experts advising; and (F) as appropriate, enabling video communications to allow improved outreach to, and other educational services for, K–12 students, including occasional remote classroom teaching for instructors at sea to improve oceanographic access for students; and (2) in consultation with the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the Director of the National Institute for Standards and Technology, and the heads of other Federal agencies, as appropriate— (A) the cybersecurity recommendations in the report of the private scientific advisory group known as JASON entitled Cybersecurity at NSF Major Facilities (JSR–21–10E) and dated October 2021 as applied to the U.S. Academic Research Fleet; (B) aligning with international standards and guidance for information security, including the use of encryption for sensitive information, the detection and handling of security incidents, and other areas determined relevant by the Director; (C) facilitating access to cybersecurity personnel and training of research and support personnel; and (D) the requirements for controlled unclassified or classified information.
Where it is
In the Senate.